Ben Affleck Doesn't Want to Be The Batman Anymore?

6 months ago

It’s been an interesting couple of weeks for Warner Bros.’ Batman stand-alone movie, with Ben Affleck leaving the project as a director, followed by the studio quickly bringing in Matt Reeves (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes) to take over at the helm. There was another report from last week revealing that a new rewrite of the script, written by Chris Terrio, had come in, and all parties involved, including Ben Affleck, were happy with the final story. Today, we have yet another rumor about this project, with more sources claiming Ben Affleck doesn’t want to be Batman anymore.

Before the actor/director backed away as director last month, he had been making the unusual statements about the project in interviews, claiming that there isn’t even a script yet, and that the project isn’t even a “sure thing.” There had previously been reports that both Ben Affleck and Geoff Johns had turned in their script, before Chris Terrio was brought in for rewrites. During the latest episode of Collider Movie Talk, host John Campea explained that he has talked to three separate sources connected to this situation at Warner Bros., who all state that Ben Affleck is trying to get out of playing Batman altogether. Here’s what he had to say on the podcast.

“Take this for what it’s worth. This is from a guy who has been burned twice by scoops, so please take this with a massive, massive grain of salt. Over the past four days, I’ve talked to three separate people, who are connected in some way, to what is going on over at Warner Bros. What all three have told me, nothing about whether the script was thrown out or whether they liked the script, nothing about the direction that Matt Reeves is taking it in, nothing about that. What has come out of the conversation with all three was this. They’re telling me that, Ben Affleck, make no mistake, he does want out. He doesn’t want to be Batman anymore. I have been told that Affleck is talking with Warner Bros. in an attempt to get out of being Batman. If they do not let him out of being Batman, that the stand alone Batman film that ultimately happens, will be the last time we see Affleck as Batman, because he apparently wants out.”

This isn’t the first we’ve heard about Ben Affleck wanting out of the DC Comics world altogether, with another report claiming that he is still expected to finish the screenplay. Even though Chris Terrio reportedly came in to rewrite the script. That report claimed there was “a chance” that he could back away from the starring role, while staying aboard as a writer and producer. That report was never confirmed, and even John Campea himself cautioned fans to take the own information he has gathered, “with a massive, massive grain of salt,” since he has been burned in the past, so perhaps this isn’t true. However, when paired with that other report from late January, it’s certainly possible that this is actually what is happening.

Ben Affleck stated in December that The Batman was on track for a spring 2017 production start, but with a new director on board, and the possibility emerging that Ben Affleck may be trying to get out of this iconic role, we may not see this film hit theaters for quite some time. There were reports that the studio is eyeing a spring 2018 release date, but unless these issues are solved, and production comes together quickly, that seems quite unlikely. Hopefully Warner Bros. will offer a substantial update on The Batman production very soon. In the meantime, take a look at the latest episode of Collider Movie Talk below, with The Batman talk coming at the 17:41 mark.